It had to be among the easiest touchdowns Thai Cottrell has scored in his life.

Lined up at receiver for his San Jose State Spartans on Colorado State’s 1-yard line in their game on Oct. 6, Cottrell went in motion to the inside, then just before the shotgun snap to quarterback Josh Love, he reversed himself.

Cottrell motored into the right flat uncovered, and Love made an easy lob to him for the score.

They could have pulled off the play blindfolded.

The massive linemen who tower over the 5-foot-7 Cottrell rushed over to celebrate with him.

To everyone else but Cottrell, it seemed a milestone moment — his first TD in five years as a Spartan.

“To me, it just felt normal,” Cottrell said. “I’ve been waiting patiently my whole college career. To score my first touchdown … it just felt like what I’ve done for so long. It was just another play. I plan on making more of those.”

After winless SJSU (0-6, 0-2) managed only a field goal last week in a 52-3 thrashing by Army, Cottrell gets that next chance on Saturday in his hometown against San Diego State, in the SDCCU Stadium in which he suited up for three CIF-San Diego Section championship games.

Those who followed Cottrell’s spectacular career during his playing days at Oceanside High School may be stunned to learn of the news of this first TD.

A human highlight reel who overcame his small stature with tremendous speed and ankle-twisting cutback moves, the 160-pound Cottrell amassed 18 touchdowns and 1,867 all-purpose yards for the Pirates in his senior year.

In three full seasons, Cottrell notched 40 touchdowns rushing and receiving on a team that played in three CIF championship games, winning one — in his junior year in a game played at Southwestern College. (He suited up for the final but didn’t see action as a freshman.)

“A very bright football player, and incredible with the ball in his hands,” former Oceanside coach John Carroll said this week. “One of the things that people don’t recall is how physical he was, how tough he was. We asked our slots to do just about everything. He did all of it as well as any of the players we had.”

No one expected that Cottrell could keep that kind of pace in Division I football. But neither could it have been foreseen that he would have only minimal impact with the Spartans, other than being their reliable and dangerous punt and kick returner.

“To be honest, it was a little frustrating,” Cottrell said on the phone this week. “I felt like I wasn’t able to show the coaches and my teammates what I was capable of doing. But I was patient. I knew what I could do.”

Recruited by Ron Caragher, the former USD head coach who lasted four years at the Spartans helm before being fired after the 2016 season, Cottrell saw little playing time in the two years after he redshirted.

Brent Brennan took over the program last year, and it looked as if Cottrell would get more touches. He got the starting nod at receiver in the opener, but suffered an elbow injury that limited his play for the rest of the year, and he didn’t make a single reception.

“A huge heartbreaker,” Cottrell said. “It was a bummer at first, but it made me want to make an impact in my senior year even more.”

Healthy again, Cottrell has 14 catches for 119 yards and the one touchdown in the first six games this season.

“These coaches came in and believed in me,” Cottrell said. “They have found opportunities for me to make plays. They’ve put me in situations where I can get the ball into open space.”

Watching from afar with every chance he gets is Carroll, who won a record 13 section titles before retiring after the 2014 season. Cottrell is among the favorite players he coached in 26 years, and Carroll is excited to see him getting the chance to excel.

“I think he’s having the kind of year we all thought he could have,” Carroll said. “The previous coaches didn’t understand his skill set. You just watch one of his kick returns and you figure out how to duplicate that in offensive plays. That didn’t come until recently. It’s nice to see the light come on, even if it was a little late.”

Cottrell is one of the premier kick returners in the nation this season. He ranks fifth in overall return yardage (554 yards), eighth in kickoff return average (29.7 yards) and 15th in punt return (12.0).

At then-12th-ranked Oregon in the third game, Cottrell sliced through a crowd on a kick return and raced 96 yards before being shoved out of bounds just shy of the goal line.

“First of all, I should have scored,” Cottrell said with a laugh. “I hit that hole and saw all that open space. Their 80,000 fans went quiet. It was an awesome feeling.”

He badly wants to score on a kick return before his career is over.

The dream scenario for Cottrell is that it comes on Saturday, when he estimates at least 50 family and friends will be in the stands.

Cottrell graduates in December with a degree in communications, and he is leaning toward returning to San Diego to train to be a firefighter.

“In firefighting, they work as a team,” Cottrell said. “It’s almost like a football team. They’re always working together. There’s a little danger to it that makes me want to do it, kind of like football.”

Carroll, who stays in regular contact with Cottrell, isn’t the least bit surprised by the choice.

“It fits his character,” he said. “No question, he would be phenomenal.”